Intraocular lens insertion device

ABSTRACT

An intraocular lens insertion device which dramatically reduces the possibility that a plunger damages an intraocular lens, and which can safely and surely insert an intraocular lens into an eye is provided. An intraocular lens insertion unit comprises a lens disposing part for disposing an intraocular lens, a plunger for pushing out the intraocular lens disposed at the lens disposing part, a transition part for deforming the intraocular lens pushed out by the plunger, and a nozzle for ejecting the deformed intraocular lens. The plunger has a lens contact part for contacting the outer edge of the intraocular lens, and a protrusive part for pushing the lens contact part downward the intraocular lens by the deformation of the intraocular lens, both lens contact part and protrusive part are provided at the leading end of the plunger.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No.15/063,395, filed Mar. 7, 2016, now U.S. Pat. No. 10,390,940, which is acontinuation of U.S. application Ser. No. 13/244,449, filed Sep. 24,2011, now U.S. Pat. No. 9,289,288, which is a divisional of applicationSer. No. 12/602,442, having a 371(c) date of Dec. 15, 2009, now U.S.Pat. No. 8,747,465, which is the U.S. National Stage of PCT app. Ser.No. PCT/JP2008/059996, filed May 30, 2008, each of which is incorporatedherein by reference in its entirety.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates to an intraocular lens insertion deviceused for inserting an intraocular lens or a phakic intraocular lens intoan aphakic eye that has undergone a cataract surgery or phakic eye in arefractive surgery.

BACKGROUND ART

Elimination of an opacified crystal lens through an ultrasonicemulsification and implantation of a lens into an eye that has undergonethe elimination of the crystal lens are commonly carried out in cataractsurgeries. Nowadays, a soft intraocular lens made of a soft material,such as a silicon elastomer or a soft acrylic material, is used, anoptical part of the intraocular lens is folded by an intraocular lensinsertion device, and the intraocular lens in this state is pushed by aplunger to push out the lens from a nozzle, and is inserted into an eyethrough an incision which is smaller than the diameter of the opticalpart.

Intraocular lens insertion devices can insert an intraocular lens intoan eye through a tiny incision, thereby reducing the possibilities of acorneal astigmatism or an infection disease after a surgery. To furtherreduce the possibility of a corneal astigmatism or an infection diseaseafter a surgery, it is desirable to minimize an incision for insertingan intraocular lens into an eye as much as possible.

To minimize an incision, however, it is necessary to fold an intraocularlens in a smaller size with the miniaturization of the incision. Foldingan intraocular lens in a smaller size increases elastic restoring forceof the intraocular lens, so that a slide resistance applied to a plungerbecomes large in pushing out the intraocular lens from a nozzle by theplunger.

When the slide resistance applied to the plunger becomes large on somelevel, the leading end of the plunger may run on the face of the opticalpart of the intraocular lens. Accordingly, even if the intraocular lensis inserted into an eye, the intraocular lens may be damaged by theleading end of the plunger, so that it is difficult in some cases toobtain a desired property of the intraocular lens appropriately.

To overcome such a problem, there is disclosed an intraocular lensinsertion device which captures an intraocular lens disposed on a lensdisposing part without no load by a plunger having a slot formed at theleading end thereof from a position parallel to the intraocular lens,and prevents the plunger from running on the intraocular lens whenreleasing the intraocular lens (for example, in Patent Document 1).

Further, there is also disclosed another intraocular lens insertiondevice having a circular nose part, offset asymmetrically with respectto the central line of a cartridge lumen, and provided at the leadingend of a plunger (for example, in Patent Document 1). According to thisintraocular lens insertion device, the plunger is urged in such a waythat the nose part is pressed against the lower part of the cartridgelumen, and is caused to slide the lower part of the cartridge lumen bysuch urging force, thereby preventing the nose part from running on anintraocular lens.

-   Patent Document 1: Japanese Un-Examined Patent Application    Publication No. H9-506285-   Patent Document 2: Japanese Un-Examined Patent Application    Publication No. 2002-516709

DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION Problems to be Solved by the Invention

According to Patent Document 1, however, it is structured to cause theleading end of the plunger itself to clip an intraocular lens, so that apositioning between the intraocular lens and the leading end of theplunger requires a high precision. Further, if the intraocular lens ismoved from the lens disposing part because of some reasons, there is apossibility that the intraocular lens is not ejected out because theplunger cannot capture the intraocular lens through portions other thanthe slot. Even if the intraocular lens is ejected out, the leading endof the plunger highly possibly damages the optical part or a supportpart of the intraocular lens. Still further, in pressing out theintraocular lens by the plunger, it is thought that the intraocular lenscoming in contact with the plunger are significantly deformed, and inreleasing the intraocular lens in a crystal lens, there is a possibilitythat the intraocular lens is not easily released from the slot of theplunger because of the significant deformation of the intraocular lens.It is expected that the groove of the slot is produced in such a manneras to have some versatilities in its height, so that depending on thedegree of an intraocular lens, a gap between the height of the groove ofthe slot and the lens becomes large, and it may be difficult to controlthe movement of the intraocular lens in ejecting the intraocular lens inthe crystal lens.

According to Patent Document 2, however, a large load is always appliedto the plunger while the plunger is contacting the internal wall of thecartridge, and because the load applied to the plunger is large, theplunger is fatigued, damaged, and is subjected to a plastic deformationby using the apparatus repeatedly, so that such a plunger may damage anintraocular lens. Therefore, to prevent the fatigue, damage, and plasticdeformation of the plunger, the selection of the material of the plungeris limited.

It is an object of the invention to provide an intraocular lensinsertion device which dramatically reduces the possibility that aplunger damages an intraocular lens, and which can safely and surelyinsert an intraocular lens into an eye.

Means for Solving the Problems

To achieve the object, an intraocular lens insertion device according toa first aspect of the invention comprises: a lens disposing part wherean intraocular lens is disposed; a plunger which pushes out theintraocular lens disposed on the lens disposing part; a transition partfor deforming the intraocular lens pushed out by the plunger; and anozzle which ejects out the deformed intraocular lens, and wherein theplunger has a lens contact part which contacts an outer edge of theintraocular lens, and a protrusive part which pushes the lens contactpart toward a disposing-part bottom face of the lens disposing partwhere the intraocular lens is disposed, by the deformed intraocularlens, both lens contact part and protrusive part being formed at aleading end of the plunger.

According to a second aspect of the invention, the protrusive part mayprotrude toward a front of a lens traveling direction upwardly theintraocular lens and beyond the lens contact part.

According to a third aspect of the invention, the protrusive part mayhave a top face formed in a smoothly curved convex plane.

According to a fourth aspect of the invention, the lens contact part maybe formed in a planer shape.

According to a fifth aspect of the invention, the lens contact part mayhave one end corner, which is on a bottom face side of the lensdisposing part, and is formed in a shape like a letter R having acurvature radius less than or equal to 70% of the thickness of the outeredge of the intraocular lens.

According to a sixth aspect of the invention, the plunger may have a rodlike axial member, and the lens contact part may be formed in a mannerprotruding from the axial part toward the bottom face of the lensdisposing part.

According to a seventh aspect of the invention, the plunger may beformed of a synthetic resin.

According to an eighth aspect of the invention, the intraocular lens maybe disposed on the lens disposing part beforehand.

Effects of the Invention

According to the intraocular lens insertion device set forth in thefirst aspect of the invention, the protrusive part pushes the lenscontact part downwardly the intraocular lens by the deformation of theintraocular lens, a possibility that the intraocular lens is damaged isfurther reduced, and the intraocular lens can be inserted into an eyesurely and safely.

According to the intraocular lens insertion device set forth in thesecond aspect of the invention, the protrusive part surely pushes thelens contact part downwardly the intraocular lens by the deformation ofthe intraocular lens.

According to the intraocular lens insertion device set forth in thethird aspect of the invention, it is possible to prevent the opticalpart from being damaged due to the upper face of the protrusive part.

According to the intraocular lens insertion device set forth in thefourth aspect of the invention, it is easy to position the intraocularlens and the leading end of the plunger.

According to the intraocular lens insertion device set forth in thefifth aspect of the invention, the lens contact part contacts the outeredge of the intraocular lens with a large area, and frictional force ina direction vertical to the lens traveling direction is increased,resulting in the prevention of the leading end of the plunger fromrunning on the optical part.

According to the intraocular lens insertion device set forth in thesixth aspect of the invention, even if the one end corner is lifted upfrom the bottom of a cartridge lumen, the one end corner can bite intothe outer edge of the intraocular lens, thereby achieving an anchoreffect.

According to the intraocular lens insertion device set forth in theseventh aspect of the invention, the device can be mass-produced at alow cost, and can be used as a disposal type. Furthermore, the leadingend and the axial end part can deform, so that an application of anexcessive load to the intraocular lens can be prevented, therebypreventing the intraocular lens from being damaged.

According to the intraocular lens insertion device set forth in theeighth aspect of the invention, an operation of loading the intraocularlens into the intraocular lens insertion device becomes unnecessary in asurgery, thereby reducing a possibility of a mishandling. Furthermore,the lens contact part can be selected in accordance with the thicknessof the outer edge of the intraocular lens, thus it is possible tofurther surely prevent the leading end of the plunger from running onthe optical part.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing the structure of an intraocularlens insertion device according to an embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing the structure of the intraocularlens insertion device;

FIG. 3A is a side view showing the structure of a basal end member ofthe intraocular lens insertion device and FIG. 3B is a cross-sectionalview thereof;

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing the structure of a lens disposing part;

FIG. 5A is a side view showing the structure of a leading end member and

FIG. 5B is a cross-sectional view thereof;

FIG. 6 is a top plan view showing the structure of a transition partwith vertical cross-sectional views taken therethrough;

FIG. 7A is a top plan view showing the structure of a slider and FIG. 7Bis a side view thereof;

FIG. 8 is a partial enlarged view showing the slider;

FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view along a line A-A in FIG. 7 ;

FIG. 10 is a perspective view showing the structure of the slider;

FIG. 11 is a front view showing the structure of a rod;

FIG. 12A is a partial enlarged view showing the rod and FIG. 12B is apartial enlarged view showing another rod;

FIG. 13 is a right side view showing the rod;

FIG. 14A is a front view showing the structure of a plunger and FIG. 14Bis a left side view thereof;

FIG. 15A is a side view showing the structure of a grip and FIG. 15B isa cross-sectional view thereof;

FIG. 16 is a perspective view showing the structure of a casing;

FIG. 17A is a plan view showing the structure of a case leading end,

FIG. 17B is a vertical cross-sectional view thereof, and FIG. 17C is anend view thereof;

FIG. 18A is a plan view showing the structure of a case rear end, FIG.18B is a vertical cross-sectional view thereof, and FIG. 18C is an endview thereof;

FIG. 19 is a perspective view showing an assembling method step by step;

FIG. 20 is a perspective view showing the assembling method step bystep;

FIG. 21 is a perspective view showing the assembling method step bystep;

FIG. 22 is a perspective view showing the assembling method step bystep;

FIG. 23 is a perspective view showing the assembling method step bystep;

FIG. 24 is a perspective view showing the assembling method step bystep;

FIG. 25 is a perspective view showing the assembling method step bystep;

FIG. 26 is a perspective view showing the assembling method step bystep;

FIG. 27 is a partial cross-sectional view showing the way how the caseleading end and the case rear end are coupled together;

FIG. 28 is a partial cross-sectional view showing the way how theintraocular lens insertion device operates;

FIGS. 29A-29D are partial cross-section views showing the operation ofthe device step by step;

FIG. 30 is a is a plan view of the leading end member and FIGS. 30A-30Eare partial cross-section views thereof showing the operation of thedevice step by step;

FIG. 31 is a partial cross-sectional view showing the operation;

FIG. 32 is a partial cross-sectional view showing the operation;

FIG. 33A is a partial enlarged side view schematically showing theoperation of the device and FIG. 33B is a plan view thereof;

FIG. 34A is a cross-sectional view along line X-X in FIGS. 33A and 33B,and FIG. 34B is a cross-sectional view along line Y-Y in FIGS. 33A and33B;

FIG. 35A is a partial enlarged side view schematically showing theoperation of the device and FIG. 35B is a plan view thereof;

FIG. 36 is a partial enlarged side view schematically showing theoperation of the device;

FIG. 37A is an upper perspective view showing a leading end of a rodaccording to a first modified embodiment and FIG. 37B is a lowerperspective view thereof;

FIG. 38A is an upper perspective view showing a leading end of a rodaccording to a second modified embodiment and FIG. 38B is a lowerperspective view thereof;

FIG. 39A is an upper perspective view showing a leading end of a rodaccording to a third modified embodiment and FIG. 39B is a lowerperspective view thereof;

FIG. 40A is an upper perspective view showing a leading end of a rodaccording to a fourth modified embodiment and FIG. 40B is a lowerperspective view thereof; and

FIG. 41A is an upper perspective view showing a leading end of a rodaccording to a fifth modified embodiment and FIG. 41B is a lowerperspective view thereof.

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

Hereinafter will be explained preferred embodiments of the inventionwith reference to the accompanying drawings.

1. General Structure

An intraocular lens insertion device 1 shown in FIG. 1 comprises anintraocular lens insertion unit 2 and a casing 3, and is structured insuch a way that the intraocular lens insertion unit 2 in which anintraocular lens 4 is loaded beforehand is placed in the casing 3. Theintraocular lens insertion unit 2 is placed in the casing 3 in thismanner, thereby preventing the intraocular lens 4 loaded in theintraocular lens insertion unit 2 beforehand from accidentally beingejected out therefrom, and from being damaged during a delivery thereof,and prior to a surgery such as at a presurgery preparation aftershipment of the intraocular lens insertion device 1 from a manufacturingfactory. Forming the overall intraocular lens insertion device 1 mainlyof a synthetic resin facilitates a mass production thereof, thussuitable for a disposal application. Note that in the followingexplanations, the front of a lens traveling axis as a lens travelingdirection is simply called “front”, and the rear of the lens travelingaxis is simply called “rear”.

(1) Intraocular Lens Insertion Unit

As shown in FIG. 2 , the intraocular lens insertion unit 2 has a mainbody 6, a slider 7, a plunger 8, and a lock mechanism 9. The slider 7and the plunger 8 are provided in a manner capable of moving frontwardand rearward in the main body 6. The lock mechanism 9 limits a frontwardmovement of the plunger 8. The lock mechanism 9 is released as theslider 7 is moved frontward, and then the plunger 8 becomes movablefrontward. The intraocular lens insertion unit 2 structured in thismanner pushes out the intraocular lens 4 by the slider 7 at first,surely folds the intraocular lens 4 in a predetermined shape, and thenpushes out the intraocular lens 4 by the plunger 8, to thereby fold downthe intraocular lens compactly, thus allowing the intraocular lens 4 tobe inserted into an eye. Accordingly, the intraocular lens insertionunit 2 is designed to allow the lock mechanism 9 to reliably prevent theplunger 8 from pushing out the intraocular lens 4 before the slider 7pushes out the intraocular lens 4, and to fold down the intraocular lens4 disposed in the main body 6 through two stages first by the slider 7and then by the plunger 8 while moving the intraocular lens 4 frontward.

(a) Main Body

The main body 6 comprises a cylindrical basal end member 11 and atapered leading end member 12. The basal end member 11 and the leadingend member 12 are detachably coupled together by a first coupler 13,thus integrated together.

As shown in FIG. 3 , the basal end member 11 has a lens disposing part15, an engagement part 16, slider guides 17, a stopper 18, firstlatching openings 19, and an engagement protrusion 20.

The lens disposing part 15 is formed of a tabular member protrudingfrontward from a front one end. As shown in FIG. 4 , the lens disposingpart 15 has a disposing-part bottom face 25 formed horizontal along thelens traveling axis A, and a disposing frame 26 formed at both ends ofthe disposing-part bottom face 25 parallel to the lens traveling axis Aand across the lens traveling axis A. The disposing frame 26 has framebodies 27, 27 and base end rails 28, 28. Wall-like frame bodies 27, 27are provided in a standing manner, surrounding the disposing-part bottomface 25 so as to be provided across the lens traveling axis A, and thebase end rails 28, 28 are formed integral with the frame bodies 27, 27in a manner protruding upward the disposing bottom face 25. Note that inthis specification, a disposing-part bottom face 25 side with respect tothe intraocular lens 4 disposed on the lens disposing part 15 is called“down”, and a side opposite to the disposing-part bottom face 25 sidewith respect to the intraocular lens 4 disposed on the lens disposingpart 15 is called “up”.

As shown in FIGS. 3A and 3B, the engagement member 16 has firstprotrusions 21, 21 and widened-part receivers 22, and the firstprotrusions 21, 21 and the widened-part receivers 22 are provided at thefront end of the basal member 11. The two first protrusions 21, 21 areprovided in a protruding manner on the outer faces of side walls in adirection orthogonal to the lens traveling axis A. The first protrusions21, 21 are each formed in a shape like a wedge tapered toward the front.The two widened-part receivers 22 are provided on side walls in adirection orthogonal to the lens traveling axis A and to the directionin which the first protrusions 21, 21 are provided. The widened-partreceiver 22 is formed by cutting out the side walls of the basal endmember 11 so as to be widened toward the front. Accordingly, the firstprotrusions 21, 21 are provided in a direction orthogonal to thewidened-part receivers 22.

The slider guides 17 comprise a pair of slits which are formed throughthe cylindrical side walls and are parallel to the lens traveling axisA. The slider guide 17 is so formed as to start from the front end ofthe basal end member 11 and to end at the approximate center thereof.The slider guide 17 has the widened-part receiver 22 formed at one end.

The basal end member 11 has the stopper 18 formed on the internalsurface of the side wall thereof. The stopper 18 comprises a wall soformed as to plug up a portion of the internal surface of the basal endmember 11 at the front end side.

The first latching openings 19 are provided at the other end side whichis the rear end side of the basal end member 11, and the two firstlatching openings 19 are formed in the side walls in the directionorthogonal to the lens traveling axis A. The first latching opening 19is integrally formed with a latching-part guide 23. The latching-partguide 23 is provided in the internal surface of the side wall, and isconstituted by a groove having a bottom surface and extending toward thefront in parallel with the lens traveling axis A.

The engagement protrusion 20 comprises a part of a thread constituting amale screw formed in such a way that the external surface of the sidewall of the basal end member 11 functions as a root of the thread, andis provided on the external surface of the side wall in a directionorthogonal to the lens traveling axis A. The side wall is provided witha second latching opening 24.

As shown in FIGS. 5A, 5B and 30 , the leading end member 12 has thefirst coupler 13, a transition part 31, and a nozzle 32, and folds upthe intraocular lens pushed out from the main body compactly, and ejectsout the intraocular lens 4 from the nozzle 32 at the leading end. Theleading end member 13 has the first coupler 13 formed at the outer edgeof the basal end, and coupled to the main body 6. The leading end member13 further has the transition part 31 and the nozzle 32 in this ordertoward the front along the lens traveling axis A.

The first coupler 13 has engagement receivers 33, 33, a widened part 34,and a protective part 35, and couples the leading end member 12 and themain body 6 together. The engagement receivers 33, 33 comprise a pair ofopenings formed in the base end of the leading end member 12. Theopening that constitutes the engagement receiver 33 is formed in arectangular shape, and is formed in such a manner as to run in adirection orthogonal to the lens traveling axis A.

The widened part 34 is provided on the base end of the leading member 12orthogonal to the direction in which the engagement receivers 33, 33 areformed, in a protruding manner. The widened part 34 comprises aprotrusive piece each formed in a shape like a wedge tapered toward therear from the base end.

The protective part 35 is provided between the base end of the leadingend member 12 and the transition part 31, and is so formed as to coverthe exterior of the lens disposing part 15.

As shown in FIG. 6 , the transition part 31 has a lumen 40, atransition-part bottom face 41, and a leading end rail 42 serving as arail, and folds the intraocular lens 4 disposed on the lens disposingpart 15 in a predetermined shape while moving the intraocular lens 4.Note that the rail is so formed as to support portions of an outer edge4 c of the intraocular lens 4, parallel to the lens traveling axis A,from beneath.

The lumen 40 is formed in a shape like a mortar tapered toward theleading end from the base end. The lumen 40 has the transition-partbottom face 41 and the leading end rail 42 at the bottom thereof.

The transition-part bottom face 41 comprises a tabular member formedhorizontally around the lens traveling axis A. The transition-partbottom face 41 is connected to the leading end of a disposing-partbottom face 25 of the basal end member 11, which is the front endthereof, at the basal end of the leading end member 12, which is therear end thereof. The transition-part bottom face 41 converges into thelumen 40 at the leading end, which is the front end of the leading endmember 12.

The leading end rail 42 is formed by causing both sides of thetransition-part bottom face 41 to protrude upwardly from thetransition-part bottom face 41. The base end which is the rear of theleading end rail 42 matches a part where the protective part 35 and thetransition part 31 are connected together. Accordingly, the base endwhich is the rear end of the leading end rail 42 is connected to theleading ends, which are the front ends of the base end rails 28, 28provided on the basal end member 11. The leading end rail 42 has aninclined face 42 a which inclines upwardly toward the front. Theinclined face 42 a is formed in the vicinity of the base end of thelumen 40 formed in a shape like a mortar tapered toward the leading endfrom the base end. The inclined face 42 a has a rear base end whichholds the intraocular lens 4 in such a way that a portion near thecenter of the optical part of the intraocular lens 4 does not contactthe transition-part bottom face 41, and has a front leading end whichhas an inclination becoming equal to the height of the center of theheight of the lumen 40. Further, the leading end of the inclined face 42a is connected to a parallel plane, and converges gently into the lumen40 toward the front leading end of the leading end member 12.

The transition part 31 structured as mentioned above has the leading endcommunicated with the nozzle 32. The nozzle 32 has a circular crosssection, and has a leading end formed in a shape inclined downwardlytoward the front, and has a slit 32 a formed on the top.

Note that the leading end of the inclined face 42 a may have a heightincreased as it converges into the lumen 40 toward the front end withoutbeing connected to the parallel plane.

The inclined face 42 a of the leading end rail 42 has a certaininclination angle to the transition-part bottom face 41 in FIG. 6 , butmay be parallel to the transition-part bottom face 41, and in this case,it is desirable that the inclined face 42 a should have a heightapproximately same as that of the base end rail 28 in the vicinity ofthe basal end member 11, and should gradually increase the height towardthe front. The leading end rail 42 may employ a structure of graduallyincreasing the inclination angle toward the leading end, i.e., having aheight approximately equal to that of the base end rail 28 in thevicinity of the basal end member 11, and of gradually inclining inwardlytoward the leading end.

The protective part 35 has a through hole 36 opened in a directionorthogonal to the lens traveling axis A and the transition-part bottomface 41. The through hole 36 is provided at that portion where theleading end of the lens disposing part 15 contacts when the basal endmember 11 is assembled with the leading end member 12.

(b) Slider

As shown in FIGS. 7A and 7B, the slider 7 has a lens control mechanism45 and a lock mechanism 46. The lock mechanism 46 prevents the plunger 8from moving accidentally, and the lens control mechanism 45 moves anddeforms the intraocular lens 4 disposed on the lens disposing part 15 asa first stage of a movement and a deformation.

The lens control mechanism 45 has a lens push-out part 47, a guidegroove 48, wings 49, 49, operation parts 50, 50, a loop guide 51, a lensholder 52 and a stopper piece 53.

The lens push-out part 47 is constituted by a part of a circular archaving such a curvature radius as to define an approximately samecontour as that of the lens, and is so formed as to contact theintraocular lens 4 surface by surface.

The guide groove 48 is formed in such a way that the plunger 8 can moveback and forth along the lens traveling axis A, and the leading end ofthe plunger 8 can protrude frontward from the lens push-out part 47. Theguide groove 48 is constituted by a groove which is formed through a oneside face of the slider 7 and is parallel to the lens traveling axis A.

The wings 49, 49 are provided on both side faces of the slider 7 acrossthe lens traveling axis A in a protruding manner so as to engage withthe slider guides 17. The wings 49, 49 each have the operation part 50,50 provided integral with the respective protruding ends thereof. Theoperation parts 50, 50 are each formed of a tabular member parallel tothe lens traveling axis A, and each have a plurality of grooves 55formed on the external surface in a direction orthogonal to the lenstraveling axis A.

The stopper piece 53 is constituted by a wall protruding in a directionorthogonal to the lens traveling axis A, and is provided on the otherface side of the slider 7.

The loop guide 51 is formed on the other face side of the leading end ofthe slider 7 where no guide groove 48 is formed, and is constituted by agroove formed in a planer shape similar to a loop part (to be discussedlater) of the intraocular lens 4. The loop part is held in the internalpart of the guide groove 48 in such a state that no stress issubstantially applied thereto.

As shown in FIG. 8 , the lens holder 52 is provided above the lenspush-out part 47 so that the lens holder 52 can tilt through a hinge 60.The lens holder 52 is constituted by a member formed in an approximatelyrectangular shape as viewed from the above, and has a sliding body 61formed integral on the top face. The sliding body 61 is constituted by amember formed in a shape like a wagon roof extending in a directionorthogonal to the lens traveling axis A, and has a curved face facingupward.

As shown in FIGS. 7A and 7B, the lock mechanism 46 has tilting parts 65,65, latching parts 66, 66 and extending parts 67, 67. The lock mechanism46 surely locks the plunger 8 when unused, and surely releases thelocking when in use.

The tilting parts 65, 65 are a pair across the lens traveling axis A,and protrude from the respective rear ends of the wings 49, 49backwardly. The tilting parts 65, 65 are so provided as to tilt on aplane formed by the lens traveling axis A and the tilting parts 65, 65.

The latching parts 66, 66 are formed at the respective center of thetilting parts 65, 65, and are each constituted by a protrusionprotruding outwardly, i.e., in a direction away from the lens travelingaxis A. The latching part 66 has a tiny protrusion 68 formed at theleading end protruding in the direction away from the lens travelingaxis A (see, FIG. 9 ).

The extending parts 67, 67 are so formed as to protrude backwardly fromthe respective latching parts 66, 66, and each of which has an urgingpiece 69 protruding in a direction coming close to the lens travelingaxis A (see, FIG. 7A). The urging piece 69 has a connection face 69 ainclined inwardly, i.e., inclined so as to come closer and closer fromthe front of the extending part 67 to the rear thereof. The connectionface 69 a is connected to a holding face 69 b parallel to the lenstraveling axis A at the rear of the extending part 67.

(C) Plunger

As shown in FIG. 10 , the plunger 8 comprises a rod 71, a plunger mainbody 72, and a grip 73. The plunger 8 performs a second stage of amovement and a deformation on the intraocular lens 4 moved to someextent and deformed in a predetermined shape by the slider 7. Theplunger 8 then inserts the intraocular lens 4 folded up compactly intoan eye.

As shown in FIG. 11 , the rod 71 has a rod-like axial part 74 formed insuch a way that the one end thereof can protrude from the nozzle 32 ofthe leading end member 12, a lens contact part 75, a protrusive part 76and a first attachment part 77.

The lens contact part 75 and the protrusive part 76 are provided at theone end of the rod 71, contact the outer edge 4 c of the intraocularlens 4 that has undergone the first stage of a movement and adeformation by the slider 7, and perform the second stage of a movementand a deformation on the intraocular lens 4.

As shown in FIG. 12A, the lens contact part 75 has a plane 75 a formedat the front end of the rod 71 on the disposing-part bottom face 25side. A one end corner 75 b of the lens contact part 75, which is a partwhere the outer wall of the axial part 74 and the bottom portion of thelens contact part 75 are connected together, is formed in a shape like aletter R having a curvature radius less than or equal to 70% of thethickness of the outer edge 4 c of the intraocular lens 4. It is furtherpreferable that the curvature radius forming the one end corner 75 bshould be less than or equal to 50% of the thickness of the outer edge 4c of the intraocular lens 4. The plane 75 a of the lens contact part 75is so formed as to be vertical to the lens traveling axis A or formed insuch a way that the upper end inclines backwardly with respect to thebottom end.

The protrusive part 76 is pressed in a direction orthogonal to the lenstraveling axis A by the intraocular lens 4 pushed out and deformed bythe plunger 8. Namely, the protrusive part 76 is so formed as to slideinto the overlapped portion of the outer edge 4 c of the intraocularlens 4 folded as it travels in the transition part 31. Accordingly, theprotrusive part 76 is urged relatively by what corresponds to thethickness of the overlapped portion of the outer edge 4 c of theintraocular lens 4. Therefore, as the intraocular lens 4 is deformed,the protrusive part 76 is pushed in a direction orthogonal to the lenstraveling axis A, i.e., the central direction of the lumen 40 by theintraocular lens 4. The protrusive part 76 is provided on the other sideof the front end of the rod 71, and protrudes frontward beyond the lenscontact part 75. The protrusive part 76 has an upper face formed in asmooth convex curved face. In this manner, the rod 71 has the lenscontact part 75 formed in a direction in which the protrusive part 76 isurged by the intraocular lens 4.

A recess, concaved rearwardly, is formed at the front end of the rod 71between the lens contact part 75 and the protrusive part 76. This recessis provided to bend the protrusive part 76 when the lens contact part 75is pushing the intraocular lens 4, and is able to absorb an excessiveforce applied from the protrusive part 76 to the outer edge 4 c of theintraocular lens 4.

As shown in FIG. 12B, the lens contact part 75 may be formed in a shapesuch that at least a part thereof protrudes downwardly from the axialpart 74. More specifically, a lower outer wall 74 a of the axial part 74gradually inclines downwardly toward the leading end, and the lenscontact part 75 is provided at the leading end in a protruding manner.

The rod 71 has the first attachment part 77 provided at the other end ofthe rod 71 which is the rear end thereof. As shown in FIG. 13 , thefirst attachment part 77 has a shape that one side of the cross sectionrises up, and the other end is flat. In this manner, the firstattachment part 77 has an asymmetrical cross section in a directionorthogonal to the lens traveling axis A.

As shown in FIGS. 14A and 14B, the plunger main body 72 has a secondlatching part 80 and a circular disk part 81. The second latching part80 is provided on the front outer face of the plunger main body 72, andis constituted by an elastic piece 82, and a protrusive piece 83provided on the elastic piece 82. The elastic piece 82 forms a hollow 84in the plunger 8, and comprises a thin tabular member laid across theface of the hollow 84 in a hanging manner.

The circular disk part 81 is formed in a coaxial circular shape with thecentral axis of the plunger main body 72, and has a pair of releasegrooves 86, 86 across that central axis. Each release groove 86 has ashape similar to the shape of the latching part 66 as viewed from thelens traveling axis A direction, and has a wide bottom face 87 providedin the vicinity of the central axis and second protrusions 88 so formedas to block the bottom face 87 and touch internally the outer edge ofthe circular disk part 81.

Further, the plunger main body 72 has a first attachment hole 89 formedin the front end thereof, and a second attachment part 90 formed in therear end.

As shown in FIGS. 15A and 15B, the grip 73 is constituted by a memberformed in a shape like a cylinder having a bottom. The grip 73 has aninternal shape able to insert the basal end member 11 from the rear endthereof, and has a female screw 90 formed on the internal surface andthreaded with the male screw formed on the outer face of the basal endmember 11. The grip 73 has a second attachment hole 96 formed in thecenter of the bottom face thereof. The grip 73 further has a pluralityof antislip protrusive strips 97 formed on the outer face thereof.

(2) Casing

As shown in FIG. 16 , the casing 3 is a lengthy box having an openedupper face and a flat bottom face 3 a. The casing 3 comprises a caseleading end part 100 and a case rear end part 101, both coupled togetherthrough a second coupler 102. The casing 3 protects the intraocular lensinsertion unit 2 when unused, and holds the intraocular lens 4 disposedbeforehand at a predetermined position.

As shown in FIGS. 17A and 17B, the case leading end part 100 has aprotective end 105, a reinforcement piece 106, a holding rod 107,latching rods 108, a latching claw 109, a marking 111, and a gas ventinghole 112. The protective end 105 is a standing wall surrounding the oneend of the case leading end part 100, and protects the nozzle 32 of theintraocular lens insertion unit 2 attached to the casing 3. Thereinforcement piece 106 is a standing wall provided on the internalbottom face 3 a of the casing 3, and increases the strength of thecasing 3. The holding rod 107 is a cylindrical body provided on theinternal bottom face 3 a, and has an upper end formed in such a shapethat a piece thereof on the protective end 105 side is half removed.

The latching rod 108 and the latching claw 109 are provided at the otherend of the opened case leading end part 100. The latching rods 108 are aset of cylindrical bodies protruding in the vertical direction, and haveupper latching rods 108 a provided at both right and left upper portionsof the other end of the case leading end part 100, and lower latchingrods 108 b provided at both right and left bottom portions of the otherend of the case leading end part 100. The length of the lower latchingrod 108 b in the heightwise direction is longer than the length of theupper latching rod 108 a in the heightwise direction. The upper latchingrod 108 a is formed at a position shifted to the one end side of thecase leading end part 100 from the lower latching rod 108 b.

The latching claw 109 is provided at a tabular member 110 protruding inthe vertical direction from the casing bottom face 3 a of the other endof the opened case leading end part 100. The tabular member 110 canelastically deform.

The marking 111 is provided at a position indicating a proper amount ofa lubricant agent in filling the lubricant agent in the intraocular lensinsertion unit 2 with the intraocular lens insertion unit 2 being placedin the casing 3. Note that the marking 111 can be marked on theintraocular lens insertion unit 2 itself, but the intraocular lensinsertion unit 2 has a limited space for putting the marking 111, sothat it is difficult to put a clear marking on the intraocular lensinsertion unit 2. In a case where the marking 111 is put on theintraocular lens insertion unit 2, when the intraocular lens 4 is movedin the intraocular lens insertion unit 2, an operator cannot see themoving and deforming intraocular lens 4, thus reducing the operabilityfor the operator. Therefore, it is not desirable to put the marking 111on the intraocular lens insertion unit 2 itself.

On the other hand, according to the intraocular lens insertion device 1of the embodiment, the marking 111 is put on the casing 3, so that anoperator can clearly become aware of a position indicating the properamount of the lubricant agent. Because the intraocular lens insertionunit 2 does not have the marking 111, the operator can see the movingand deforming intraocular lens 4 when the intraocular lens 4 moves inthe intraocular lens insertion unit 2, thus improving the operabilityfor the operator. The marking 111 can be in various forms, and forexample, can be constituted by punch marking, printing, or a protrusivepiece.

The gas venting hole 112 is formed in the base bottom face 3 a, thusmaking it possible to smoothly introduce and remove a gas at the time ofa gaseous sterilization.

As shown in FIGS. 18A and 18B, the case rear end part 101 has a lockingpart 120, third latching holes 121, a claw receiving part 122, and apositioning part 123. The locking part 120 is formed by cutting bothside walls so as to substantially correspond to the operation parts 50,50. The third latching holes 121 are in positions, which are located atan opened end of the case rear end part 101, and correspond to therespective latching rods 108 formed on the case leading end part 100.The positioning part 123 is formed by raising the casing bottom face 3 aof the other end of the case rear end part 101 in a vertical direction.

The claw receiving part 122 is provided at a tabular member 124protruding from the casing bottom face 3 a of the opened end of the caserear end part 101 in the vertical direction. The tabular member 124 canelastically deform.

The case rear end part 101 has detachment preventive parts 125 formed onthe internal surfaces of the respective side walls. The detachmentpreventive part 125 has a protrusion protruding inwardly, and the upperend of the protrusion has a face inclined gently.

2. Assembling method

Next, an explanation will be given of the method of assembling theintraocular lens insertion device 1 of the invention with reference tothe accompanying drawings.

First, the second attachment part 90 of the plunger main body 72 isfitted into the second attachment hole 96 of the grip 73, therebycoupling the grip 73 and the plunger main body 72 (see, FIG. 19 ). Atthis time, the second attachment part 90 is axially supported by thesecond attachment hole 96. Accordingly, the grip 73 is rotatablysupported with respected to the plunger main body 72. Next, the firstattachment part 77 of the rod 71 is inserted into the first attachmenthole 89 of the plunger main body 72, and fixes the rod 71 to the plungermain body 72 (see, FIG. 20 ). Because the first attachment part 77 ofthe rod 71 has a cross section asymmetrical in a direction orthogonal tothe lens traveling axis A, the rod 71 can be surely fixed to the plungermain body 72 in a predetermined direction. The grip 73, the plunger mainbody 72, and the rod 71 are coupled together in this manner, therebyassembling the plunger 8.

Subsequently, the slider 7 is attached to the basal end member 11 (see,FIG. 21 ). To attach the slider 7 to the basal end member 11, one end ofthe basal end member 11 where the slider guide 17 is formed is widenedin the direction orthogonal to the lens traveling axis A, and theextending parts 67, 67 are inserted through the one end to attach theslider 7. The slider 7 is attached in such a way that the directionthereof at this time becomes a direction in which the one end providedwith the guide groove 48 faces the lens disposing part 15 of the basalend member 11. The wings 49, 49 are slid in the respective slider guides17 by holding the operation parts 50, 50, and the slider 7 is slid untilthe wings 49, 49 reach the ends of the respective slider guides 17. Atthe same time, the latching parts 66, 66 of the slider 7 latch with therespective first latching holes 19 of the basal end member 11.

The plunger 8 is inserted through the other end of the basal end member11 to which the slider 7 is attached in this manner (see, FIG. 22 ). Atthis time, the rod 71 of the plunger 8 is first inserted, and the urgingpiece 69 of the slider 7 is caused to engage with the release groove 86formed in the side face of the plunger main body 72. The plunger 8 isinserted until the second latching part 80 of the plunger main body 72engages with the second latching hole 24 of the basal end member 11.

As explained above, the second latching part 80 is constituted by theelastic piece 82, and the protrusive piece 83 provided on the elasticpiece 82, and the elastic piece 82 is a thin tabular member laid acrossthe face of a hollow 84 formed in the plunger 8 in a hanging manner,thus being able to easily deform. Accordingly, by merely inserting theplunger 8 into the basal end member 11, the second latching part 80 canengage with the second latching hole 24, thereby facilitating anassembling of the plunger 8 to the leading end member 12.

The urging piece 69 inclines inwardly from the front of the extendingpart 67 to the rear thereof, i.e., inclines as to come close to the lenstraveling axis A, so that as the plunger 8 engages with the guide groove48, the tilting parts 65, 65 tilt outwardly. As the tilting parts 65, 65tilt outwardly, the latching parts 66, 66 are urged outwardly, so thatthe latching parts 66, 66 can be surely engaged with the latching holesof the basal end member 11.

A frontward movement of the plunger 8 is locked because the secondprotrusions 88 of the circular disk part 81 contact the latching parts66, 66 of the slider 7.

With the frontward movement of the plunger 8 being locked, the basal endmember 11 is placed in the case rear end part 101 (see, FIG. 23 ). Theoperation parts 50, 50 are inserted into the lock parts 120, and at thesame time, the other end of the basal end member 11 contacts thepositioning part 123 of the case rear end part 101. The outer face ofthe basal end member 11 is engaged with the detachment preventive parts125 provided on both side walls of the case rear end part 101. The basalend member 11 is placed in the case rear end part 101 in this manner,and the operation parts 50, 50 of the slider 7 are inserted into thelock parts 120 provided in both side walls of the case rear end part101, thereby locking a frontward or rearward movement of the slider 7.

With the plunger 8 and the slider 7 being locked in this manner, theintraocular lens 4 is disposed on the lens disposing part 15 (see, FIG.24 ). The intraocular lens 4 is disposed in such a way that one of apair of loop parts 4 a is positioned at the groove of the loop guide 51of the slider 7, and the outer edge 4 c of the optical part 4 b ismounted on the base end rails 28, 28 of the lens disposing part 15.Because the base end rails 28, 28 protrude upwardly from thedisposing-part bottom face 25, the intraocular lens 4 can be disposed soas not to have the portion around the center of the optical part 4 bcontacted the disposing-part bottom face 25. Therefore, according to theintraocular lens insertion device 1, the intraocular lens 4 can bestored without applying a load to the intraocular lens 4.

According to the embodiment, the intraocular lens 4 is disposed with thebasal end member 11 being placed in the case rear end part 101 havingthe flat casing bottom face 3 a. Because the casing 3 is splittable, andone part thereof is attached to the basal end member 11, the basal endmember 11 having the lens disposing part 15 can be held in a stablestate without any specific jigs, thereby facilitating a disposition ofthe intraocular lens 4 on the lens disposing part 15.

The engagement part 16 of the basal end member 11 where the intraocularlens 4 is mounted is engaged with the engagement receivers 33, 33 of theleading end member 12, thereby coupling the leading end member 12 andthe basal end member 11 together (see, FIG. 25 ). The leading end member12 has the widened part 34, and as the widened part 34 is inserted intothe widened-part receiver 22 of the basal end member 11, the one end ofthe basal end member 11 is pushed and widened in a direction orthogonalto the lens traveling axis A direction and the direction in which thewidened-part receiver 22 is provided. Accordingly, the first protrusions21, 21 of the basal end member 11 provided in a direction orthogonal tothe widened-part receiver 22 are put into the engagement receivers 33,so that the basal end member 11 and the leading end member 12 can besurely coupled together.

By coupling the basal end member 11 and the leading end member 12together, the disposing-part bottom face 25 of the basal end member 11and the transition-part bottom face 41 of the leading end member 12 areconnected together, and the base end rails 28, 28 of the basal endmember 11 and the leading end rail 42 of the leading end member 12 arecoupled together.

Because the leading end member 12 is provided with the protective part35, the intraocular lens 4 disposed on the lens disposing part 15 can beprotected.

Subsequently, the latching rod 108 of the case leading end part 100 isinserted into the third latching hole 121 of the case rear end part 101to do positioning, and the latching claw 109 of the case leading endpart 100 is engaged with the claw receiving part 122 of the case rearend part 101 (see, FIG. 26 ). Note that in a case where positioning iscarried out with the four latching rods 108 like the embodiment, it isdifficult to coincidentally position all four rods to the third latchingholes 121.

On the other hand, according to the embodiment, the latching rod 108 atthe case leading end part 100 is formed in such a way that the length ofthe lower latching rod 108 b in the heightwise direction is longer thanthe length of the upper latching rod 108 a in the heightwise direction.Accordingly, the lower latching rod 108 b is first inserted into thethird latching hole 121, and then the upper latching rod 108 a isinserted into the third latching hole 121, thereby enabling a certainpositioning. Namely, changing the lengths of the lower latching rod 108b and the upper latching rod 108 a enables a positioning two positionsby two positions, thereby facilitating positioning in comparison with acase like a conventional technology where positioning is carried out onfour positions at the same time (see, FIG. 27 ).

According to the embodiment, because the latching claw 109 is engagedwith the claw receiving part 122, the case rear end part 101 and thecase leading end part 100 can be surely coupled together. Further, whenthe latching claw 109 is engaged with the claw receiving part 122, thelatching claw 109 makes an engagement sound, thereby preventing anassembling failure like an improper engagement.

The case leading end part 100 has the holding rod 107 provided on theinternal bottom face, and the holding rod 107 is inserted into thethrough hole 36 provided in the protective part 35 of the leading endmember 12. The through hole 36 is provided in a position where theleading end of the lens disposing part 15 inserted in the protectivepart 35 abuts, so that the holding rod 107 prevents the intraocular lens4 from moving frontward. Therefore, according to the embodiment, theintraocular lens 4 can be surely held at a predetermined position whencarried.

3. Working and Effectiveness

Next, an explanation will be given of the working and effectiveness ofthe intraocular lens insertion device 1 of the embodiment.

First, with the intraocular lens insertion unit 2 being placed in thecasing 3 (see, FIG. 26 ), a viscoelastic material as a lubricant agentis filled in the lens disposing part 15 of the intraocular lensinsertion unit 2 through the through hole 36 provided in the leading endmember 12.

Because the case leading end part 100 has the marking 111 provided at aposition indicating the proper amount of the viscoelastic material, itis easy to fill the viscoelastic material at a proper amount.

According to the intraocular lens insertion device 1, with theintraocular lens insertion unit 2 being placed in the casing 3, theviscoelastic material is filled in the lens disposing part 15 in thismanner, it is possible to fill the viscoelastic material with the slider7 and the plunger 8 being locked and with the nozzle 32 being protected.

Note that the holding rod 107 provided on the case leading end part 100is inserted into the through hole 36 to prevent the intraocular lens 4from moving, but because the upper part of the holding rod 107 is formedin such a shape that a piece on the protective part 105 side is halfremoved, the through hole 36 on the upper part of the leading end member12 is not plugged by the holding rod 107. Therefore, the viscoelasticmaterial can be surely filled in the lens disposing part 15 through thethrough hole 36.

When the intraocular lens insertion unit 2 in which the viscoelasticmaterial is filled is removed from the casing 3, the slider 7 becomesmovable. Note that the plunger 8 is locked by the lock mechanism 9 so asnot to move frontward.

The operation parts 50, 50 are grasped, and the slider 7 is movedfrontward. As the slider 7 is pushed out, the latching parts 66, 66 abutthe internal edges of the first latching holes 19, 19, and the tiltingparts 65, 65 tilt inwardly. As the slider 7 is further pushed out, thelatching parts 66, 66 pass over the first latching holes 19, 19, and thetiny protrusions 68, 68 provided at the leading ends of the respectivelatching parts 66 engage with the latching-part guide 23. Then, thelatching of the latching parts 66 and the first latching holes 19, 19are released, so that the slider 7 can become movable frontward (see,FIG. 28 ).

At the leading end of the slider 7, the first stage of movement anddeformation are performed on the intraocular lens 4. That is, the lenspush-out part 47 of the slider 7 abuts the outer edge 4 c of theintraocular lens 4, and pushes out the intraocular lens 4 (see, FIG.29A, FIG. 30A). At the same time, the lens holder 52 is pushed againstthe internal wall of the transition part 31, and swayed downwardly asviewed from a side, and pushes the one face of the optical part of theintraocular lens 4 in a downward direction, which is one direction (see,FIG. 29B, FIG. 30B).

On the other hand, the intraocular lens 4 moves on the leading end rail42 that has the inclined face 42 a inclined upwardly which is adirection opposite to the direction of pushing the intraocular lens 4 bythe lens holder 52, as the intraocular lens 4 moves to the front.

Accordingly, the leading end rail 42 upwardly deforms both sides of theouter edge 4 c across the lens traveling axis A as portions parallel tothe lens traveling direction in the peripheral edge of the intraocularlens 4 in a direction opposite to the direction in which the intraocularlens 4 is pushed by the lens holder 52 (see, FIG. 30C).

Therefore, according to the intraocular lens insertion unit 2 of theembodiment, the lens holder 52 pushes the optical part of theintraocular lens 4 downwardly, while the leading end rail 42 upwardlypushes both sides of the outer edge 4 c of the intraocular lens 4 acrossthe lens traveling axis A. Accordingly, the intraocular lens insertionunit 2 can surely fold the intraocular lens 4 in a predetermined shape,i.e., a shape that the optical part surely protrudes downwardly in theembodiment (see, FIG. 29C and FIG. 30D).

Note that according to the conventional intraocular lens insertiondevices, the base end of the transition part is formed in anapproximately diamond-like shape, and the leading end thereof isdeformed into a circular shape gradually to deform an intraocular lensinto a predetermined shape, the shape of the transition part is complex.

In contrast, according to the intraocular lens insertion unit 2 of theembodiment, the leading end rail 42 is provided with the inclined face42 a to deform both sides of the outer edge 4 c of the intraocular lens4 across the lens traveling axis A. Therefore, the shape of thetransition part 31 is simplified, thus facilitating a manufacturing ofthe transition part.

Further, according to the intraocular lens insertion unit 2, theintraocular lens 4 is pushed out by the slider 7 having the lenspush-out part 47 which has a larger contact face than the lens contactpart 75 of the plunger 8. Accordingly, the intraocular lens insertionunit 2 can push out the intraocular lens 4 without applying localstress.

Still further, the sliding body 61 of the lens holder 52 is formed in ashape like a wagon roof, the sliding body 61 can slide uniformly againstthe internal wall of the transition part 31, so that it is possible tohold the optical part 4 b of the intraocular lens 4 uniformly.

Yet further, according to the intraocular lens insertion unit 2, becausethe stopper 18 which abuts the stopper piece 53 of the slider 7 isprovided on the basal end member 11, even if the slider 7 is pushed outwith strong force, the leading end member 12 does not come apart (see,FIG. 31 ).

As the slider 7 is pushed out, locking of the plunger 8 by the lockmechanism 9 is released. That is, as the slider 7 is pushed out,engagement of the latching parts 66, 66 and the second protrusion 88provided on the circular disk part 81 of the plunger main body 72 arereleased. Accordingly, the locking of the plunger 8 is released, and theplunger 8 becomes movable frontward while engaging the tilting parts 65with the release grooves 86, 86 of the circular disk part 81 (see, FIG.32 ).

As explained above, because the slider 7 has the extending parts 67, 67,the position of the tilting parts 65 provided on the slider 7 ismaintained so as not to be shifted with respect to the release grooves86 of the plunger main body 72 even when the slider 7 is movedfrontward. Therefore, when the slider 7 is moved frontward, the releasegrooves 86 and the tilting parts 65 can surely engage with one another.Accordingly, it is possible to surely fit the tilting parts 65, 65 intothe respective release grooves 86, 86 after the slider 7 is moved, sothat the locking of the plunger 8 is surely released, enabling theplunger 8 to be pushed out.

The released plunger 8 performs the second stage of movement anddeformation on the intraocular lens 4 deformed in the predeterminedshape by the slider 7. That is, as the plunger 8 is pushed out frontwardthrough the guide groove 48 provided in the one side of the slider 7,the lens contact part 75 contacts the outer edge 4 c of the intraocularlens 4 deformed in the predetermined shape by the slider 7. The grip 73is pushed out, and the female screw 95 is threaded with the engagementprotrusion 20 of the basal end member 11. As the grip 73 is rotated inthis state, the plunger 8 can be moved by a predetermined amount. As theplunger 8 is moved frontward in this manner, the intraocular lens 4 isfurther pushed out to the transition part 31, and is folded morecompactly (see, FIG. 29D and FIG. 30E). At this time, a slidingresistance applied to the leading end of the rod 71 becomes large.

Hereinafter, an explanation will be given in detail of how the lenscontact part 75 provided at the leading end of the plunger 8 contactsthe outer edge 4 c of the intraocular lens 4 with reference to FIGS.33A, 33B, 34A and 34B.

As shown in FIGS. 33A and 33B, the lens contact part 75 abuts the outeredge 4 c of the intraocular lens 4 with the protrusive part 76protruding from the outer edge 4 c of the intraocular lens 4 toward theoptical part 4 b. As the plunger 8 is moved frontward, the lens contactpart 75 bites into the outer edge 4 c of the intraocular lens 4 andbrings out an anchor effect, and moves the intraocular lens 4 to thefront of the lens traveling axis A against the sliding resistancebetween the disposing-part bottom face 25 and the optical part 4 b ofthe intraocular lens 4. Note that in the specification, the anchoreffect means an effect of increasing the adhesion of the lens contactpart 75 and the outer edge 4 c of the intraocular lens 4 as the lenscontact part 75 bites into the outer edge 4 c of the intraocular lens 4.

According to a plunger 8 of the conventional technologies, when thesliding resistance caused by the intraocular lens 4 becomes large tosome extent, the leading end of the plunger 8 may run on the opticalpart of the intraocular lens 4.

In contrast, according to the intraocular lens insertion unit 2 of theembodiment, the lens contact part 75 has the plane 75 a, and has the oneend corner 75 b formed in a shape like a letter R having a curvatureradius smaller than or equal to 70% of the thickness of the outer edge 4c of the intraocular lens 4. Therefore, according to the intraocularlens insertion unit 2, the lens contact part 75 contacts the outer edge4 c of the intraocular lens 4 with a wide area, and increases frictionalforce in a direction orthogonal to the lens traveling axis A. Thiscauses frictional force in a direction orthogonal to the lens travelingaxis A between the lens contact part 75 and the outer edge 4 c of theintraocular lens 4 even if the sliding resistance caused by theintraocular lens 4 becomes large. Therefore, a better anchor effect canbe achieved, thereby preventing the lens contact part 75 from moving ina direction orthogonal to the lens traveling axis A. Accordingly, theintraocular lens insertion unit 2 can prevent the leading end of theplunger 8 from running on the optical part 4 b.

Further, the plane 75 a of the lens contact part 75 is formed in such away that the upper end thereof inclines backwardly with respect to thelower end, thereby facilitating the one end corner 75 b to bite into theouter edge 4 c of the intraocular lens 4, so that the anchor effect iseasily achieved.

According to the intraocular lens insertion unit 2 (the type shown inFIG. 12B), the lens contact part 75 protrudes downwardly from the axialpart 74. Therefore, even if the plunger 8 bends downwardly with respectto the lens traveling axis A in a protruding manner (see, FIGS. 35A and35B), the plane 75 a of the lens contact part 75 inclines upwardly, andthe lens contact part 75 can be positioned below the axial part 74. Thisenables the one end corner 75 b of the lens contact part 75 to bite intothe outer edge 4 c of the intraocular lens 4 in comparison with a casewhere the plunger 8 does not bend (see, FIG. 36 ) even if the plunger 8bends downwardly with respect to the lens traveling axis A in aprotruding manner and the one end corner 75 b is apart from the lowerpart of the lumen 40, according to the intraocular lens insertion unit 2of this type.

According to the plunger 8 of the embodiment, at the leading end side ofthe rod 71, the lower outer wall 74 a of the axial part 74 graduallyinclines toward the leading end, and the lens contact part 75 isprovided at the leading end thereof in a protruding manner, and the oneend corner 75 b of the lens contact part 75 is formed in a shape like aletter R having a curvature radius smaller than or equal to thethickness of the outer edge 4 c of the intraocular lens 4. Therefore,even if the plunger 8 bends downwardly with respect to the lenstraveling axis A in a protruding manner and the one end corner 75 b islifted up to a certain extent from the bottom part of the lumen 40, theone end corner 75 b can be caused to easy bite into the outer edge 4 cof the intraocular lens 4, thereby achieving the anchor effect.Therefore, the intraocular lens insertion unit 2 can prevent the leadingend of the plunger 9 from running on the optical part 4 b.

In a case where the plunger 8 bends concavely toward the disposing-partbottom face 25 with respect to the lens traveling axis A, the lenscontact part 75 located at the leading end of the plunger 8 is pressedagainst the bottom part of the lumen 40, thereby further surelypreventing the leading end of the plunger 8 from running on the opticalpart 4 b.

According to the intraocular lens insertion unit 2, the plunger 8 isformed of a synthetic resin, the plunger 8 does not apply an overload tothe intraocular lens 4, thereby suppressing a damaging to theintraocular lens 4.

Further, the intraocular lens insertion unit 2 is of a preset type thatis to undergone a shipment with the intraocular lens 4 being disposed onthe lens disposing part 15 beforehand, so that the lens disposing part75 can be designed and selected in accordance with the thickness of theouter edge 4 c of the intraocular lens 4, resulting in a further ensuredprevention of the leading end of the plunger 8 from running on theoptical part 4 b.

According to the intraocular lens insertion unit 2, the rod 71 has theprotrusive part 76 formed at the leading end thereof. The protrusivepart 76 slides into the overlapped portion of the outer edge 4 c of theintraocular lens 4 folded as it travels in the transition part 31.Accordingly, the protrusive part 76 is relatively urged by whatcorresponds to the thickness of the overlapped portion of theintraocular lens 4. Namely, the protrusive part 76 receives force in adirection orthogonal to the lens traveling axis A from the intraocularlens 4 pushed and deformed by the plunger 8, and the force is applied tothe lens contact part 75. The lens contact part 75 is pressed downwardthe optical part 4 b of the intraocular lens 4 by this force. Therefore,even if the sliding resistance becomes large as the intraocular lens 4is folded compactly, the lens contact part 75 is urged downward theoptical part 4 b of the intraocular lens 4, so that a lifting up of thelens contact part 75 is prevented, thereby surely preventing the plunger8 from running on the optical part 4 b.

As explained above, according to the intraocular lens insertion unit 2,the lens contact part 75 has the plane 75 a, and has the one end corner75 b formed in a shape like a letter R having a curvature radius smallerthan or equal to 70% of the thickness of the outer edge 4 c of theintraocular lens 4, the rod 71 has the protrusive part 76 formed on theleading end thereof, and the lens contact part 75 protrudes downward theaxial part 74, thereby surely preventing the plunger 8 from running onthe optical part 4 b even though the plunger 8 is formed of a syntheticresin and thus having a weak strength.

Further, according to the intraocular lens insertion unit 2, the upperface of the protrusive part 76 is formed in a smooth curved shape.Therefore, it is possible to prevent the optical part 4 b of theintraocular lens 4 from being damaged due to the upper face of theprotrusive part 76. Accordingly, the intraocular lens insertion unit 2can cause the ejected intraocular lens 4 to achieve a desiredcharacteristic.

Still further, according to the intraocular lens insertion unit 2, thelens contact part 75 is formed by a plane. Accordingly, it is possibleto easily position the intraocular lens 4 and the leading end of theplunger 8. Therefore, the intraocular lens insertion unit 2 can surelyfold the intraocular lens 4 compactly to eject it.

As explained above, the effectiveness that a running of the plunger 8 onthe optical part 4 b of the intraocular lens 4 is surely preventedbecause the plunger 8 has the protrusive part 76 provided at the leadingend thereof can also be brought out by an intraocular lens insertiondevice which does not have the foregoing plunger 8. Namely, intraocularlens insertion devices which deform an intraocular lens while moving theintraocular lens by pushing out the intraocular lens disposed at a lensdisposing part in a transition part by a plunger may employ a structureof deforming portions of an outer edge 4 c of the intraocular lensacross a lens traveling axis in a direction orthogonal to the lenstraveling axis.

Intraocular lens insertion devices may be structured in such a way thata lens disposing part has a function of the first stage of deformationas long as the apparatuses have a function of moving an intraocularlens, or an intraocular lens deformed to some extent beforehand may bedisposed on a lens disposing part.

Accordingly, a protrusive part slides into an overlapped portion of theouter edge 4 c of the intraocular lens folded as it travels in atransition part 31. Thus, because the protrusive part is relativelyurged by what corresponds to the thickness of the overlapped portion ofthe outer edge 4 c of the intraocular lens in this manner, it ispossible to prevent a plunger from running on the optical part of theintraocular lens.

The intraocular lens 4 is pushed out by the slider 7 and the plunger 8in this manner from a state where the intraocular lens 4 is disposed onthe lens disposing part 15, and is ejected from the nozzle 32 in a statewhere the intraocular lens 4 is folded compactly.

4. Modified Embodiments

The present invention is not limited to the foregoing embodiment, andcan be changed and modified in various forms without departing from thescope of the invention. For example, the explanation has been given ofthe case where the lens holder of the slider pushes the optical part ofthe intraocular lens downwardly and the leading end rail lifts up theperipheral end of the intraocular lens parallel to the lens travelingdirection upwardly. The invention is, however, not limited to this case,and the lens holder of the slider may push one face of the optical partof the intraocular lens upwardly, while the leading end rail may deformthe peripheral end of the intraocular lens parallel to the lenstraveling direction downwardly, which is a direction opposite to theforegoing one direction.

In the foregoing embodiment, the explanation has been given of the casewhere the intraocular lens insertion device 1 is mainly formed of asynthetic resin overall. The invention, however, is not limited to thiscase, and the intraocular lens insertion device 1 may be formed of ametal, such as stainless steel, or titanium.

In the foregoing embodiment, the explanation has been given of the casewhere the recess, concaved rearwardly, is formed between the lenscontact part 75 and the protrusive part 76 at the front end of the rod71. The invention, however, is not limited to this case. Namely, asshown in FIGS. 37A and 37B, a rod 100 of a first modified embodiment hasa leading end constituted by a lens contact part 75 formed substantiallyvertical, and a protrusive part 76.

A rod 105 shown in FIGS. 38A and 38B according to a second modifiedembodiment has a two-forked protrusive part 106 (106 a, 106 b) formed atthe leading end. Accordingly, when the intraocular lens 4 pushed out bythe plunger 8 deforms, the protrusive part 106 can deform in a directionin which the divided leading ends become narrow by external force. Thisenables the narrowed leading ends of the two-forked protrusive parts 106a, 106 b to absorb a load applied to the basal portion of the supportpart 4 a of the intraocular lens 4. Therefore, the rod 105 of the secondembodiment can reduce a load applied to the basal portion of the supportpart 4 a of the intraocular lens 4, thereby preventing the basal portionof the support part 4 a from being damaged. Further, the rod 105 of thesecond embodiment can sandwich the optical part 4 b or the support part4 a of the intraocular lens 4 through the leading ends of the tow-forkedprotrusive parts 106 a, 106 b, and adjust the position of theintraocular lens 4 in an eye.

A rod 110 of a third modified embodiment shown in FIGS. 39A and 39B hasa protrusive part 111 having a width which is about ⅓ of the axial part74, and provided at the center of the leading end of the rod 71. Theprotrusive part 111 can easily deform with force in a directionorthogonal to the lens traveling axis A in comparison with the foregoingembodiment, and can reduce a load applied to the basal portion of thesupport part 4 a of the intraocular lens 4 likewise the second modifiedembodiment, thereby preventing the basal portion of the support part 4 afrom being damaged.

Further, a rod 115 of a fourth modified embodiment shown in FIGS. 40Aand 40B has a protrusive part (or “upper protrusion”) 116 having a widthwhich is about ½ of the axial part 74, and provided at one corner of theleading end of the rod 71. A proximally extending indentation defines aslot 74 d that is located between the protrusive part 116 and the lenscontact part (or “lower protrusion”) 75. The protrusive part 115 caneasily deform with force in a direction orthogonal to the lens travelingaxis A in comparison with the foregoing embodiment, and can reduce aload applied to the basal portion of the support part 4 a of theintraocular lens 4 like in the second modified embodiment, therebypreventing the basal portion of the support part 4 a from being damaged.

A rod 120 of a fifth modified embodiment shown in FIGS. 41A and 41B hasa protrusive part 121 tapered toward a leading end of the rod 120.Further, the leading end 121 a, an upper end 121 b, and an upper corner121 c of the protrusive part 121 are each formed in a smoothly curvingmanner. The upper surface 74 a and corner 74 b of the axial part 74 arealso formed in a smoothly curving manner, specifically in a portionwhere the axial part 74 and the support part 4 a of the intraocular lens4 are overlapped with each other. Thus, when the intraocular lens 4 isejected out, a rear support part 4 a staying between the axial part 74and the nozzle 32 can be smoothly pushed out into an eye as the shape ofthe optical part 4 b is gradually restored. The axial part 74 alsoincludes a lower surface 74 c. The lens contact part 75 and theprotrusive part 121 together define a slot 74 d therebetween. The taperof the protrusive part 121 also results in indentations 74 e that aredefined by the contact part top wall 75 e and the protrusive part sidewalls 121 d.

Although the explanation has been given of the case where the lenscontact part 75 is a plane in the foregoing embodiment, the invention isnot limited to this case, and the lens contact part 75 can be structuredin such a manner as to increase frictional force with the outer edge ofthe intraocular lens. For example, the lens contact part 75 may have arough face, or a groove running in the vertical direction and thehorizontal direction, or may have a protrusion which bites into theouter edge of the intraocular lens.

The invention claimed is:
 1. A method, comprising the steps of: pushingan intraocular lens with a plunger along a lens travelling axis withinan intraocular lens insertion apparatus, the plunger including a rodhaving a proximal portion and a distal axial portion with an upperprotrusion defining a distal end, first and second lateral surfaces onopposite sides of the lens travelling axis, and an uppermost surfacethat extends from the from the first lateral surface to the secondlateral surface, a lower protrusion defining a distal end that is offsetfrom the distal end of the upper protrusion in a direction defined bythe lens travelling axis, a slot between the upper and lowerprotrusions, and an indentation, formed by non-parallel walls whichintersect with one another at an intersection, that extends proximallyfrom the upper protrusion; and applying a force to the upper protrusionin a direction orthogonal to the lens travelling axis.
 2. A method asclaimed in claim 1, wherein the force is applied to the upper protrusionby a folded portion of the intraocular lens.
 3. A method as claimed inclaim 1, wherein the indentation defines a first indentation; and theplunger further includes a second indentation that extends proximallyfrom the upper protrusion.
 4. A method as claimed in claim 1, whereinthe intraocular lens insertion apparatus includes a main body includingan intraocular lens storage region, a tapered transition part and anozzle; and the force is applied as the upper protrusion moves throughthe tapered transition portion.
 5. A method as claimed in claim 1,wherein the upper protrusion includes a rounded end.
 6. A method asclaimed in claim 1, wherein the intraocular lens includes an opticalpart and support parts; the plunger includes a lens contact surface; andpushing the intraocular lens comprises pushing intraocular lens opticalpart with the lens contact surface.
 7. A method as claimed in claim 1,further comprising the step of: storing the intraocular lens in theintraocular lens insertion apparatus.
 8. A method as claimed in claim 1,further comprising the step of: pushing the intraocular lens with aslider prior to pushing the intraocular lens with the plunger.
 9. Amethod as claimed in claim 1, wherein the uppermost surface comprises aconvex curved uppermost surface.
 10. A method, comprising the step of:pushing an intraocular lens with a plunger along a lens travelling axiswithin an intraocular lens insertion apparatus, the plunger including arod having a proximal portion and a distal axial portion with an upperprotrusion defining a distal end, a proximal end, and a widthperpendicular to the lens travelling axis that increases from the distalend, a lower protrusion defining a distal end that is offset from thedistal end of the upper protrusion in a direction defined by the lenstravelling axis, a slot between the upper and lower protrusions, and anindentation, formed by non-parallel walls which intersect with oneanother, that extends proximally from the upper protrusion and that hasa proximal end at the proximal end of the upper protrusion.
 11. A methodas claimed in claim 10, wherein the indentation defines a firstindentation; and the plunger further includes a second indentation thatextends proximally from the distal end of the upper protrusion.
 12. Amethod as claimed in claim 10, wherein the intraocular lens includes anoptical part and support parts; the plunger includes a lens contactsurface; and pushing the intraocular lens comprises pushing intraocularlens optical part with the lens contact surface.
 13. A method as claimedin claim 10, further comprising the step of: storing the intraocularlens in the intraocular lens insertion apparatus.
 14. A method asclaimed in claim 10, further comprising the step of: pushing theintraocular lens with a slider prior to pushing the intraocular lenswith the plunger.
 15. A method as claimed in claim 10, furthercomprising the step of: applying a force to the upper protrusion in adirection orthogonal to the lens travelling axis.
 16. A method asclaimed in claim 15, wherein the force is applied to the upperprotrusion by a folded portion of the intraocular lens.
 17. A method asclaimed in claim 15, wherein the intraocular lens insertion apparatusincludes a main body including an intraocular lens storage region, atapered transition part and a nozzle; and the force is applied as theupper protrusion moves through the tapered transition portion.